


Is It Worth It?

by rhoen



Series: Tumblr Prompt Fills [6]
Category: Naruto
Genre: Asexual Character, Confessions, Developing Relationship, Grey-Ace Kakashi, M/M, Relationship Negotiation
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-09-10
Updated: 2017-09-10
Packaged: 2018-12-25 23:47:29
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,309
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12046839
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/rhoen/pseuds/rhoen
Summary: Genma really, really wants Kakashi to kiss him...Kakashi, however, doesn't make a move to do so, so Genma decides to try something else.





	Is It Worth It?

**Author's Note:**

> I was given two characters as a prompt for the post "how do i politely ask him to slam me against a wall and make out with me". This is what happened.
> 
> To be honest, I didn't expect Kakashi to be ace. It's always fun when a fic surprise you :D

Kakashi was a puzzle – an enigma wrapped in a dilemma wrapped in a riddle –and Genma was having a hard time figuring him out. There was no mistaking the looks they’d shared, and no denying the fact they both wanted each other, but for some reason Kakashi never took the final step. Despite teasing words easily shared, companionable silences, the inviting grins Genma gave, and the way they managed to brush against each other with anything but casual indifference, Kakashi didn’t make a move. Every time Genma thought something might finally happen, Kakashi shied away. It felt as if they’d never make any progress.

Honestly, Genma was starting to wonder how he was going to spell it out for the other guy. Was there even a polite way to ask someone to slam you against a wall and make out with you? How could you demand physical contact without coming across as pushy and forceful? Words weren’t really an option anyway; they hadn’t done much for them so far. They seemed to be in some sort of relationship, if Kakashi’s acceptance of Genma’s graceless suggestion that they ‘make a go of it’ was anything to go by, but beyond that nothing changed. Genma raked his brain, trying to think of a way to approach Kakashi without startling him – there had to be one – but nothing came to him. Hints, both subtle and embarrassingly blunt, hadn’t worked. The longer it drew on, the more reluctant Kakashi seemed to bridge the gap.

It was clearly time to take more decisive action, which was difficult when the man you wanted to jump was a highly skilled, deadly shinobi. Surprising him would be ill-advised. Genma wasn’t ready to die just yet.

He had to find a gentler approach and, one evening when he insisted on helping Kakashi with the dishes after dinner, he found his opportunity. Shoving aside the nearly blinding desire to launch himself at the other guy, Genma leant with forced composure against the kitchen counter, watching Kakashi.

It didn’t take long before Kakashi faltered under his gaze, looking up, confusion and uncertainty written across the visible part of his face. Even after meals, when they were alone, he tugged the mask back into place.

“What?” he asked, sounding worried.

“Nothing,” Genma lied, waiting a moment before speaking again, trying to keep his tone casual. “You know, we haven’t kissed yet.”

“Should we have?”

The response made Genma pause for the briefest of moments, the peculiarity of it setting off alarm bells. “I thought we might have by now,” he admitted, trying to dissect the odd reply.

“Do you want to?”

“Yes,” was the obvious reply – or at least Genma thought it was obvious. Worry started to knot within him as he watched Kakashi’s response to their conversation. “Don’t you?”

The silence that followed was awful. Genma’s stomach fell away sickeningly, his blood running cold.

“Kakashi?” he asked when he still didn’t receive a reply.

In answer, Kakashi started to turn away, closing off again. Genma stepped towards him, telegraphing his intention before reaching out and tugging at the sleeve of his top to stop him. Kakashi allowed him to do it.

“What’s wrong? Don’t you want to?”

The silence stretched on, leaving Genma’s heart racing with dread. At last, Kakashi gave a small reaction: a shrug.

“Would you feel better if we did it now?” he asked.

Genma couldn’t quite believe they were talking about something as simple as a kiss in such a way, although he blanched at Kakashi’s words for a different reason.

“Not if you don’t want to do it, no.” After a pause, he forced himself to continue, needing an answer. “Do you want to?”

Kakashi turned his face away, concealing his visible eye from Genma’s gaze, although didn’t pull from Genma’s loose grasp. “I… I don’t know…” came the soft reply.

“How do you mean?” Genma asked, confused and adrift. He hadn’t expected it to go this way, and part of him couldn’t help wondering where he’d messed up. The silence returned, and he tried giving a gentle verbal nudge, letting Kakashi know he was still listening, waiting patiently for an answer. “Kakashi?”

“You know the Icha Icha books?”

It wasn’t the turn Genma had expected the conversation to take, but he played along. “Yeah, I’ve read them.”

“In them…” Genma could almost hear Kakashi blushing. “I enjoy reading those things. It’s not that I don’t like thinking about them, or even thinking about doing them with you…” Another pause, and Genma hardly dared to breathe as Kakashi opened up to him. He knew there was a ‘but’ coming. “It’s just that I, uh… find it hard to put them into practice.”

Genma understood. He wasn’t sure what exactly it was he was understanding, but Kakashi’s words made sense. He loosened his hold on Kakashi’s sleeve, glad to have received an answer.

“I don’t think I feel what everyone else feels,” Kakashi admitted, his voice edged with sadness.

“That’s okay,” Genma insisted, forced lightness in his tone. In all honesty he felt a little shaken by the admission, but it wasn’t the end of the world. Far from it, really. Kakashi had admitted to thinking about doing a lot more than just kissing with him. It was a good starting point. They could definitely go from there. “Not everyone’s the same.”

“You don’t mind?”

Kakashi seemed genuinely surprised, and as he looked back round at Genma, Genma felt his heart soften a little, the worry easing. “No. We can go at our own pace. There’s no rush, right?”

It was hard to watch the rare play of emotions in Kakashi’s visible eye without closing the distance and kissing him. Genma really, really wanted to kiss him.

It was also clear after a few seconds that Kakashi still didn’t quite believe him, so Genma echoed his earlier words. “No rush whatsoever. I’m not going anywhere.”

“You’re not?” There was that surprise again.

“Nah, I like it here,” Genma reassured him with a smile. The expression softened, however, with his next words. “Although any time you want to kiss me, or do anything like that, you don’t have to ask. I’m okay with it.”

There was a moment of hesitation before Kakashi spoke. “What if we never kiss?”

Genma faltered at the question, having to give the answer serious thought. The longing he felt wasn’t easy to ignore, and the thought of never kissing Kakashi, or never sharing anything more with him…

But then, Genma considered the time they’d already spent together, and the easy companionship he’d found with Kakashi. It wasn’t like anything else he’d ever shared with anyone before. He wanted more with Kakashi, sure, but would it really be the end of the world if he didn’t get it?

“I think I could live with that,” he admitted, surprising even himself. As soon as he said it, though, he knew he’d done the right thing. Nearly all the tension left Kakashi’s body, and he gave a gentle sigh of relief. As strange as it might be, Genma knew in that moment that his relationship with Kakashi would be worth it.

He was proven right barely a second later when Kakashi reached out to him, tugging Genma closer and guiding him into an embrace.

“I can’t promise you anything,” Kakashi warned as he pressed against Genma.

Tucking his face against Kakashi’s neck and appreciating the warm, inviting smell of him as their arms locked around each other, Genma gave a mental shrug. “I don’t expect you to.”

He felt Kakashi shiver, and a moment later fabric-covered lips grazed against his hair. It wasn’t the kiss Genma had in mind earlier, but it definitely counted, and it make his heart soar.

“Thank you,” Kakashi murmured.

Genma couldn’t help smiling to himself.

Kakashi was definitely worth it.

 


End file.
